Our Opinion: Flooding a big issue that requires big money

There is no way the major flooding problem across Richland County will be solved without a big injection of federal dollars.

There also is no way it will be resolved without a collaborative effort by all public officials responsible for representing any part of Richland County.

The good news is that both of these requirements seem closer to reality than they were just a few weeks ago. That is actually very good news since this flooding problem has not been properly attacked for decades.

Big sums of federal money and unselfish collaboration are required because the task is so massive and so far overdue. Many miles of river channels need to be cleared, bridges need to be replaced, storm sewers need to be upgraded and buildings need to be demolished.

In addition to this long list of unaddressed problems, there is another cause for the worsening flooding - development. More paved surfaces and expanded commercial rooftops have increased the speed and the volume of floodwaters entering the drainage system. We obviously do not want to stop growth, but we must better anticipate the problems this development can cause downstream.

There was an encouraging meeting a couple of weeks ago involving most key players in this flooding issue. The dialogue was open and constructive. The progress may have been facilitated by decades of frustration.

Most of the barbs that were tossed at the meeting seemed aimed at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the federal agency with responsibility for flood control.

The decades-old excuse of not having enough money that the Army Corps has used was no longer being accepted.

We urge all of the local officials involved in this effort to stay focused and keep the momentum going. Solutions will take time to get implemented. Consistently applied pressure will get things started more quickly.

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Our Opinion: Flooding a big issue that requires big money

There is no way the major flooding problem across Richland County will be solved without a big injection of federal dollars.